1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a paint roller tray for use with a paint roller. The invention is particularly aimed at the DIY market in domestic paints.
2. Related Art
The use of rollers having a nap made from natural or synthetic materials such as fibers or foam to apply paints, for example, emulsion paints, is well known in both the DIY (Do It Yourself) and commercial/trade markets. However, even though an average DIY user will find painting large areas such as ceilings and walls to be much quicker using a roller rather than using a brush, there is a reluctance to use rollers. One reason for this reluctance seems to arise from the fact that paint is generally purchased in cans and must be poured into a roller tray before it can be applied to a roller. Conventional roller trays are perceived to be messy to use, to require care in cleaning and storage and to be somewhat unstable when used on step ladders.
Conventional roller trays comprise a flat surface of generally rectangular shape with an integral paint well at one end. In use, the roller is dipped into paint in the well and rolled back and forth across the flat surface to squeeze off excess paint and to distribute the paint evenly across the roller surface. The roller is then ready to be rolled across a surface to be painted so as to apply the paint thereto. Generally the flat surface of the tray is inclined slightly toward the well so that paint squeezed from the roller flows back into the well for future use.
One problem with conventional roller trays is that a user must pour paint from the original container in which it is purchased into the roller tray prior to use. This pouring operation frequently results in unwanted mess with paint splashing or running down the side of the original container.
A problem also exists when attempting to return any unused paint into the original container when painting is complete. Unused paint must either be poured back into the original container with further accompanying mess or, alternatively, thrown away. Some consumers simply pour emulsion paint down a drain, causing waste water pollution.
A further problem with conventional roller trays is that they are somewhat unwieldy and do not sit stably on conventional step ladders. The trays are somewhat larger than an average step ladder tread and so can only be reliably and stably positioned on the top of a step ladder and then only if the ladder is of the type which has a platform at the top. Often either a step ladder without a platform is used or the tray is required to be on a lower tread because of the height of an area to be painted e.g. a part of a wall. This can result in an extremely unstable situation. In some cases the tray is simply balanced on a step ladder tread from which it can easily fall with consequent spillage and disastrous results. In other cases a user steadies the tray with one hand while painting with the other hand. This restricts the ability to paint more than a small area at a time and also runs the risk that the user can fall off the steps since he has no free hand with which to support himself.
A still further problem with the traditional roller tray is that of cleaning and storage. Many DIY users buy paint for use with a roller tray on the basis that they already have a tray which was purchased previously. Not infrequently the tray has been stored after inadequate cleaning or in a location such that it has, since last used, become home for all manner of unwanted fauna. Often this means another trip to the DIY store for a new tray.